A Hiker goes Hunting

It's Huntin' season in the Catskills, and Laurie is a hunter, so I decided to tag along for the weekend. Laurie's family has a camp near Hiram's Knob / Haines / Eagle in the Catskills, which borders state land. We started from there Friday and Saturday and walked thru the woods.

Friday morning, it was clear, calm, and about 10 degrees. There was about 6-8" of new powder on the ground. The recent snow made it easy to see animal (and human!) tracks. We moved slowly and therefore dressed more warmly than if we were actually hiking. We followed old roads, herd paths, and quite often bushwacked. Sometimes we would follow the animal tracks. I followed Laurie, since she was holding a gun!

Laurie is a NY State Hunter Safety Instructor, and a very cautious hunter. We wore a lot of red and orange clothes to be seen. A few shots rang out from time to time, but they seemed to be very far away. I never felt unsafe.

Friday, we came across a drag mark. Someone had shot a deer and dragged it out of the woods. We followed it a short while and then came across bear tracks! We thought maybe the bear was going to the remains of the deer, but it veered off in a different direction, so we followed the bear tracks. They wandered around, under blowdown, back and forth across the mountain, but generally heading back towards Laurie's family camp. We could tell the tracks were fresh, as the claw marks were still visible. We also saw a place where the bear had bedded down. A little while later, the trail turned sharply up hill, and we almost gave up. We stood there talking and looking up the hill and I noticed a black figure up in a tree. It was a bear cub! It shimmied down the tree and vanished. Momma must have taken off too, we never saw her.

Saturday, it was windy and snowing lightly, and while the temperature was higher, it felt colder. We again wandered around the mountains, searching for fresh tracks. We found the continuation of the bears' tracks, but did not follow them. (You can't shoot a mother with cubs, or the cubs). We saw several fresh deer tracks, but when we encountered the deer, they were always does, and Laurie does not have a doe permit.

So, was the weekend a failure? Absolutely not. It was enlightening to be out in the woods for a different purpose. We were very quiet and I heard and saw more than I usually do: buck rubs (where a buck rubs a small tree with his antlers to polish them), birds, both by sight and sound, animal tracks, the wind, the sounds of the trees swaying, etc. I have never carried a weapon in the woods, and I am not about to start, but I gained some appreciation for hunting.

We were following some fresh tracks in the snow coming down Jewell a couple weeks ago. Young bear, big moose and what appeared to be a fox chasing a chipmunk, some real drama there. I kept expecting to come upon the "end of the chase", but never did.

Yesterday I flushed a red-tail hawk out of some brush near the trail I was hiking locally. Closer inspection revealed grouse feathers. It's WILD OUT THERE !

I like to try to identify tracks and scat, it adds another dimension to the hike.

Waumbek posted a link to a printable Free Pocket Guide to Animal Tracks in this recent thread.

Great story Tom. I used to hike during hunting season(usually bow) in N.J. years ago. Even though I wasn't hunting, I would try to be quiet and not spook anything. You do notice a lot more of wildlife habits and behavior, and nature for that matter, when you're not on a mission to bag multiple peaks. I now tend to hike a little slower, notice more of my surroundings, take lots of photos, and really enjoy being outdoors...Of course being 25 years older also helps with the speed issue!

Good post, Tom. Agree w most of what you said as a non-hunter but still an enjoyable day. It is interesting to track the animals and its easier with fresh snowcover...

Great story. I've never deer hunted, but have boar hunted several times down in Florida. I've always thought most of the fun was just being out in the woods. Glad you had fun.

You most defiantly see a lot more things just sitting and observing than you would hiking through. A few years ago I watched as a fox gave chase to a grouse and this year while sitting on watch, I saw a Great Horned Owl grab a red squirrel out of a tree. I would have to say that about 90% of the wildlife I’ve seen has been while I was hunting.

I braved the woods hunting a few times with my husband and I agree that you see the woods in an entirely different way than I would when I'm hiking. The woods seem much more alive...I found myself looking and listening to things I otherwise would not be thinking of. It's kind of cool to come across a tree that a moose has rubbed up against and to find a big tuft of moose hair or to see where something has scraped up the ground foraging for food or where the ground has been all tamped down where a deer had been bedded down for the night. Thanks for sharing your story!

-MEB

there is hiking and then there is nature observing or tracking. when I am hiking a resign myself to the fact I will miss alot of the finer nuances of nature. When birding I know I will not get the mileage in. I can spend hours and go only a mile.

Just for a hoot it is great to sit by a stream. wait for the woods to settle then watch to see what comes around.

Nice story Tom, just picturing Laurie with the gun, wow....by the way, what would you guys have done if mommy bear showed up?

Two sports, both enjoyable in their own way. I used to hunt a LOT, and almost not at all any more. When still hunting(creeping along looking and listening and hardly moving at all), or on a ground or tree stand, the amount of wildlife you see spectacular.
I had an ermine stalking a rabbit(both ran right over my boots), a redtailed hawk miss a chipmunk 5' away, a coyote almost run me over, and birds land on me.
Maybe one of the most memorable was while bowhunting in the ADKs. I was sitting on a huge fallen tree, legs on either side of the the main trunk, my back leaning against the still-standing trunk.
Had a bear come towards me, sniffing and exploring. It climbed up onto the fallen trunk and slowly, slowly, slowly walked right up it, never looking in my direction. It got about 4' away when I jumped up, drew the arrow(self-defense only as I wouldn't shoot a bear), and screamed. The bear just about turned inside-out trying to get away. I've never seen an animal run so fast.
Still get goose bumps years later remembering how exciting it was.
Now, the few times I get out "hunting", its mostly taking the bow or shotgun for a walk in the woods.

coldfeet said:

Nice story Tom, just picturing Laurie with the gun, wow....by the way, what would you guys have done if mommy bear showed up?

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Mommy was there, but she and the cub chose to run. Mommy black bears frequently avoid confrontation when they are with their young, rather than becoming defensive, as do Grizzly females. All the bears I've encountered in the wild fled when they realized I was there.

I don't know what Laurie would have done if we were charged. My guess is that she'd probably fire a warning shot first.

Nice observations

Nice descriptions Tom. It's amazing what is to be seen out in the mountains. Last year while hunting I encountered deer, coyotes, pileated (?) woodpeckers, fox, and I even spent about 30 seconds watching a Bobcat from about 30 feet. That was my most memorable moment that I hope to repeat again someday. I've also watched bears while fishing from my kayak, and watched one bear climb a cherry tree and just rip branches off eating everyhting he could. I was lucky enough to have my camera with me that day! I'm heading tomorrow after work up to camp (Speculator) to spend the next four days watching the same thing from my climbing treestand! The other thing is that I go out about an hour before first light, and the sounds are amazing as well. LL

One of my top ten reasons for loving winter: tracks!

Ask a hiker how long it will take ,1hr. Ask a hunter, all day.